The Cure for Misery
Fun Fact: Originally named 'Riddleheart Wrapped in a Mystery' but I thought that was too lighthearted. Chapter 1 "Hehe, Riddleheart, you look ridiculous!" there was a purr of laughter as the brown and white tom pulled himself out of the bramble patch he had just accidentally run into. His fur was torn out at part, sticking up in others, and he was covered in bristles and thorns. He muttered in pain and attempted to pull a thorn out of his paw. "I'd like to see you after you fall in a bramble patch." Riddleheart replied to the golden she-cat in front of him, but said so playfully. "It's not my fault you're so clumsy." the golden she-cat padded over to Riddleheart and helped him pull out a couple of bristles. "You might want to go back to camp and have Ravenface get those thorns out." she told him once they had gotten most of the debris out of his pelt. "Thanks, Goldshine." Riddleheart stood and trotted as fast as his hurting paws would let him towards camp. Goldshine stayed behind to gather the fresh-kill they had left behind and fetch the other members of the hunting patrol. Suddenly, as Riddleheart neared the log tunnel that served as an entrance to camp. He hadn't noticed he had gotten so close. He wasn't particularly lost in his thoughts, he just had a feeling that there a lot to think about. Was there something going on in camp that might be making him feel this way? Riddleheart slipped through the log and came out in a clearing of the forest. This was the camp of BerryClan. It had walls of rocks with mud and thorns to fill the holes so nothing upleasent would be able to slip through. The largest den was a hollowed out and long dead tree, the medicine den. The other dens were made out of fallen logs, hollow rocks, underground tunnels, and stacks of branches. In the case of the Nursery, it was entirely underground. This was for protection from winter chills and so it would be quite hard to find if they were invaded. Ther elder's den was a hollow rock, as was the leader's den. The rest were rectangular shapes held together by thin twigs and weaved brambles. There was another purr of laughter and Riddleheart looked over to see a bright white she-cat with a black face and paws. "You got yourself into quite the bit of trouble, I see?" she said, padding over to him and abnadoning the fresh-kill she had just finished. Riddleheart licked his chest quickly. "Uh... yeah. I need you to help me get these thorns out." Ravenface's whiskers twitched. "Yes, yes, come on." she turned the lead the way back to her den. Chapter 2 Riddleheart winced as Ravenface pulled the last thorn out of his paw. "Oh shush, ya big kit." Ravenface told him, dropping the thorn onto the small pile she had made. "You pulled a large, sharp object out of my foot!" Riddleheart muttered, his mood turned bitter from all the pain. "I think I have the right to a wince." "You're a warrior, for StarClan's sake." Ravenface's whiskers twitched with amusement as she said it. "Suck it up a bit." The warrior sighed and looked at the dirt and moss floor of the medicine den as Ravenface went to get some herbs to prevent infection. Perhaps he would go for a walk after she was done treating him. He wouldn't be able to go hunting because of the pain in his paws and the next border patrol wasn't until sun-down. He liked the idea of a walk. Perhaps he could go down by the twoleg dens and see if he could get some catmint. Ravenface returned with some marigold. She narrated what she did while she was doing it, as she always does. "First I need to chew it up into a poultice," she did so "Then I apply to the wounds. It helps stop bleeding and prevents infection. In worse cases, such as scratches and cut from battles, I would use cobweb to hold it on, but you're not hurt that bad." Riddleheart did his best not to wince as the medicine cat applyed the burning solution to his bleeding cuts. However, the observent she-cat still saw his pain and he saw her grin slightly. She was about to say something, but Riddleheart interupted her. "Oh, quiet, will you?" When Ravenface was finished she shooed him from her den and he immediately slipped out of camp. He walked slowly and put most of his weight on the paws that didn't hurt too much. He walked on moss and grass whenever he could, and mostly just ignored the pain and enjoyed the nice day. He looked up at the sun shining overhead and grinned. Well, he wasn't the manliest warrior and winced when he was in pain, so what? He was still a good part of the clan! He knew that Goldshine and Ravenface liked to mess with him and mock him a bit, but they were his friends. Goldshine was always getting him a mouse whenever he was hurt too much to get it himself, and Ravenface was always playfully joking with him. They were great friends and made life so much easier for him. Riddleheart still had that odd feeling in him. That feeling that told him today he would be puzziling about something. What was it that his own mind seemed to be telling him? That some war was coming? Other clans were plotting? Prey was going to run low? A bleeding loner would walk right in front of his face and he wouldn't notice because he was lost in his thoughts? Wait, what? ''Riddleheart stopped and looked back. He was in a flowery patch that he knew was almost out of clan territory, and the air reeked of blood. He turned his left to see a limping she-cat loner, dripping with blood and scratches on her neck, walking by. Chapter 3 "Excuse me." Riddleheart padded over to her. "You're on BerryClan territory. You might want to go the other way before you get hurt... worse." "I... don't care." The she-cat limped on, ignoring the blood coming from her cuts. "We're very territorial here, miss loner, and it would be in everyone's best interest if you leave." Riddleheart trotted after her. "It doesn't matter where I am, this cut is going to kill me anyway." the she-cat sighed, not looking up. Riddleheart suddenlly stopped. ''What am I doing? I'm gently warning a tresspasser to get away! What kind of warrior am I, to ask someone polietly to leave the territory? he looked back at the she-cat. ...But I can't just leave her. "I'll help you, come with me." After much convincing, Riddleheart managed to get the she-cat al the way to a stream near the middle of territory. It was never rich with herbs nor prey, so cats rarely go there. While the she-cat waited, Riddleheart planted his hind paws on the ground and stuck most of his body down in the stream. He looked around, keeping his eyes above water. Yes, it was still there! "Come on, it's right here." he dropped down into the shallow stream, the water only coming up to his belly fur. He waded across to a small hole in rocks and sniffed inside. Nothing but the long stale scent of moss. He grabbed a few, heavy rocks and lay them in the stream as small stepping stones for the she-cat. "Come on, you shouldn't get wet." he called to her again. The loner carefully hopped down onto the first rock. Keeping her most hurt paw in the air, she made her way across and into the hole. Riddleheart followed. "Welcome, to my secret den." Riddleheart announced. The two looked around; it was a dark and small cave, about the size of a normal den. There were discarded moss nests about and a small pool where the stream cut off from outside and collected inside. "I'm sure I can get some glowrock from somewhere, if the darkness bothers you." Riddleheart said. He trotted forward and gathered some of the moss from the corner, making a nest out of the best moss left. When the nest was done, her waved his tail for the she-cat to sit in it. When she did, she sighed with relief. Riddleheart bit his lip and looked around. He saw a bit of moss and a few cobwebs in a corner. He gathered the cobwebs and pushed them over the she-cat's wound. "Keep that there, I'll be right back." Chapter 4 Okay, now, how am I going to do this? Riddleheart wondered to himself, washing the blood from his paws in the stream. The water had already washed away all scent of the loner, and he was sure he could tkae some flowers or catmint to cover to the scent. He was also confident that no one would find her there; Riddleheart barely saw anyone come here, and when they did they stayed from the stream. As far as Riddleheart knew, he was the only one to find the secret den. When he was an apprentice, he had got in a row with his mentor. He ran off in anger and fell into the stream. He was much shorter then and thought he was going to drown. He reached out and saw a hole int he side of the ground, so he pulled himself inside. He loved the idea of a secret place to run off to, so he used a stick to dig a small pond for the stream to flow in, made some moss nests, and even when he was extra hungry he ate some fresh-kill there to avoid the strict eyes of his clanmates. He never showed anyone his hiding spot. His problem now was that cobwebs wasn't going to help the she-cat a lot. He needed to heal her completely so she was fit enough to go home. He couldn't let his clan find out; that could be considered treason. He was helping a loner, who are considered enemies until proven trusted. But still, he needed a way to heal her, and he was no medicine cat. Suddenly, a scent hit his nose. he looked around. He was farther down the stream, and was standing in the middel of a patch of marigolds. He facepawed. Of course! Riddleheart returned to the she-cat and quickly applied the marigold poultice to her wound. "That should stop infection, and the bleeding will stop." he told her when he was done. He sat and looked at her, and she stared back. Akwardly, he asked, "So... do you have a name?" "Glim." she said simply. She lay down her head, showing that she didnt want to speak much. Glim? Riddleheart wondered. Odd name. Perhaps it's short for Glimmer? It would suit her. The she-cat pelt was a shining silver with white spots scatter about her, making her look almost metallic. He sighed and shuffled around the den for a bit, using a pine branch fetched from outside to dust off a bit and make the place more comfortable. After awhile, Glim was asleep and the moon was coming up. I should head home. Suddenly, Riddleheart looked back at Glim's cut. It was on her neck... whoever struck her had the intention to kill. However, it wasn't deep nor expertly made. Maybe they didn't have the right angle, or just weren't experienced in battling? Either way, he remembered something Ravenface had told; if a cat had been in a battle with someone, their attacker's fur would be under their claws. Out of curiousity, Riddleheart crept closer, careful not to wake the she-cat, and looked at her paw. Silver fur. Interesting. That meant that whoever attacked her had the same fur color as she did. Chapter 5 The Cure for Misery The Cure for Misery